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ORATION 



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MAJOR-GENERAL 0. 0. HOWARD 



: 475 

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AXD SPEECH OF 



S686 HIS EXCELLENCY A. G. CUKTIN, 

opy 1 



GOVERNOR OF PENNSYLVANIA, 



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AT THE LAYING OP THE 



CORNER STONE OF THE MONUMENT IN THE 

SOLDIERS' NATIONAL CEMETEEY, 
AT GETTYSBURG, JULY 4, 18G5. 



WITH THE OTHER EXERCISES OP THE OCCASION. 



Published by C< \ Ass ciat.ion. 



GETTYSBURG : 
AUGIIINBAITGH & WIBLE, BOOK & JOB PRINTERS, 

CHAMBERSBTTRG STREET, SECOND SQUARE. 

1865. 



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£* Cr' Q \^/ 






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TO BE ERECTED AT 

GETTVSBURG, PA. 



ORATION 



MAJOR-GENERAL 0. 0. HOWARD 



AND SPEECH OP 



HIS EXCELLENCY A. G. CURTIN, 

GOVERNOR OF PENNSYLVANIA, 



AT THE LAYING OF THE 



CORNER STONE OF THE MONUMENT IN THE 

SOLDIER'S NATIONAL CEMETERY, 

AT GETTYSBURG, JULY 4, 18G5. 
WITH THE OTHER EXERCISES OF THE OCCASION, 



Published by the a 



GETTYSBURG : 
AUGIIINBAUGII & WIBLE, BOOK & JOB PRINTERS 

CHAMISERSBUBG .STREET, SECOND SQUARE, 

1805. 



f 



DESCRIPTION OF THE MONUMENT. 



The following artistic description of the design of the 
Monument adopted by the Board of Managers of the Sol- 
diers' National Cemetery, and to bo erected therein to the 
memory of the brave soldiers who sacrificed their lives for 
their country on the memorable battle-field of Gettysburg, 
has been furnished by the designer : 

The design of the Gettysburg Monument is adapted for 
execution, either in marble, or in granite and bronze, as may 
be deemed expedient, the material being of course controlled 
entirely by the amount appropriated. The whole rendering 
of the design is intended to be purely historical, telling its 
own story with such simplicity, that any discerning mind will 
readily comprehend its meaning and purpose. 

The super-structure is sixty feet high, and consists of a 
massive pedestal twenty-five feet square at the base, and is 
crowned with a colossal statue representing the genius of 
liberty. Standing upon a three-quarter globe, she raises 
with her right hand the victor's wreath of laurel, while with 
her left she gathers up the folds of our national flag, under 
which the victory has been won. 

Projecting from the angles of the pedestal are four buttres- 
ses, supporting an equal number of allegorical statues rcprc- 
resenting, respectively, war, history, peace and plenty. 

War is personified by a statue of the American Soldier, 
who, resting from the conflict, relates to History the story 
of the battle which this monument is intended to commem- 
orate. 

History, in listening attitude, records with stylus and tab^ 
let, the achievements of the field A the hon- 
ored dead 



Description of the Monument. 



Peace is symbolized by a statue of the American Mechan- 
ic, characterized by appropriate accessories. 

Plenty is represented by a female figure, with a sheaf of 
wheat and fruits of the earth, tipifying peace and abundance 
as the soldier's crowning triumph. 

The panels of the main die between the statues are to have 
inscribed upon them such inscriptions as may hereafter bo 
determined. 

The main die of the pedestal is octagonal in form, paneled 
upon each face. The cornice and plinth above are also oc- 
tagonal, and are heavily moulded. Upon this plinth rests an 
octagonal moulded base bearing upon its face, in high relief, 
the national arms. 

The upper die and cap are circular in form, the die being 
encircled by star3 equal in number with the States whoso 
sons contributed their lives as the price of the victory won 
at Gettysburg. 



OEDEE OF THE PEQCESSION 



CEREMONIES OF LAYING THE CORNER STONE OF TIIE 

MONUMENT IN THE SOLDIERS' NATIONAL CEMETERY. 



July 4th, 1865. 



Aids. Chief Marshal, Aids. 

Major-General John W. Geary. 

Cavalry. 

Artillery. 

Infantry. 

Major-General Meade and Staff, 

escorted by First City Troop of Philadelphia. 

Officers and Soldiers of the Army of the Potomac. 

Ex-Officers and Soldiers of the Army of the Potomac. 

Officers and Soldiers of the other Armies of the United 

States. 
Ex-Officers and Soldiers of the other Armies of the United 

States. 

•Officers and Ex-Officers of the Navy and Marine Corps of 

the United States. 

Marines. 

Soldiers of the War of 1812. 

The President. 

Lieutenant-General Grant and Staff. 

Vice-Admiral Farragut and Staff. 

The Cabinet Ministers. 

The Diplomatic Corps. 

Ex-Presidents. 

Licutcnant-Gcncral Scott and Rear-Admiral Stewart. 



6 Order of the Procession. 

The Chief Justice and Associate Justices of the Supreme 

Court of the United States. 

TnE Orator, Chaplains and Poet. 

The Committee of Arrangements. 

The Governors of the Several States and Territories and 

their Staffs. 

The Senato of the United States preceded by its Officers. 

The House of Representatives of the United States preceded 

by its Officers. 

The Heads of the Departments of the several States and 

Territories. 

The Legislatures of the several States and Territories. 

The Board of Managers of the Soldiers' National Cemetery. 

The Board of Managers of the Antietam Cemetery. 
The Federal Judiciary and the Judiciary of the several 

States and Territories. 
The Assistant Secretaries of the Departments of the Na- 
tional Government. 
Officers of the Smithsonian Institution. 
Committee of Arrangements of the Borough of Gettysburg 
The Press. 
Sanitary and Christian Commissions. 
Masonic Fraternity. 
Knights Templar. 
Independent Order of Odd Fellows. 
Other Benevolent Association . 
Corporate Authorities of Cities. 
Society of the Cincinnati. 
The National Union Musical Association of Baltimore 
The Clergy. 
Religious, Literary. Scientific and Industrial Associati 
Loyal Leagues. 
Fiic Companici 
Citizens. 



PROGRAMME OF ARRANGEMENT- 

AND 

ORDER OF EXERCISES 



CEREMONIES OF LAYING THE CORNER STONE OF THE 
MONUMENT IN THE SOLDIERS' NATIONAL CEMETERY, 



July 4th, 1865. 



The Marshals and Chief Marshal's Aids, will assemble at 
the Court House, at half-past eight o'clock, a. m. 

The military will form in Gettysburg at nine o'clock, A, 
M., on Carlisle street, its right resting on the railroad. 

All civic bodies, except citizens, will assemble according 
to the foregoing printed programme, on York street, at the 
same hour. All citizens will form on Chambcrsburg street, 
with the right resting on the square, at the same time. 

The head of the column will move at precisely ten o'clock, 
A. M., up Baltimore street to the Cemetery Grounds. 

The military will form in line as may be directed, and pre- 
sent arms, when the President of the United States and all 
who are to occupy the stand will pass to the same. 

Ladies will occupy the left of the stand, and it is desirable 
that they be upon the ground as early as ten o'clock, a. m. 

The exercises will take place as soon as the entire proces- 
sion is in position on the ground, as follows : 
Mi; sic — Band. 
Pratek by the Rev. Stephen II. Tyng, D. D. 

Music — "French's Hymn" — Union Musical Association. 
Introductory Remarks by the President of the United 

States. 



8 Programme of Arrangement. • 

Music — "Ilayward's Ode" — Union Musical Association. 

Laying op the Corner Stone by the Grand Master op 

the Grand Lodge op Masons of Pennsylvania. 

Address by tiie Governor of Pennsylvania. 

Music — Band. 
Oration by Major-General 0. 0. Howard. 
Music — Band. 
P6em by Col. C. G. Halpine. 
Music — Union Musical Association. 
Benediction — By Rev. D. T. Carnahan. 
Music — Band. 
After the benediction, the procession will be dismissed and 
the Marshals and Chief Marshal's Aids will form and re- 
turn to the Court House. 

Salutes will be fired at sunrise, during the movement of 
the procession, at the close of the exercises, and at sunset. 

JOHN W. GEARY, 

Marshal-in-Chief, and Brevet Major General Commanding. 



MILITARY PARTICIPATING IN THE CEREMONIES, 



CAVALRY. 

One Battallion of the 1st Connecticut Cavalry under 
Command of Col. B. Ives, and composed of the following 
companies : 

Company A, commanded by Lieut. Ford. 

Company C, commanded by Capt. Neville. 

Company D, commanded by Capt. Tuttle. 

Company E, commanded by Capt. Spellman. 

Company F, commanded by Capt. Phillips. 

Company M, commanded by Capt. Thompson. 

INFANTRY. 

The 50th Regiment of Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteers, 
under the following officers : 

Colonel— William H. Telford, 
Lieutenant-Colonel — Samuel K. Schwenk. 
Major — George W. Brumm. 
Adjutant — Lewis Crater. 
Quartermaster — John S. Eckel. 
Assistant Surgeon — Frank P. Wilson. 
Chaplain — Halleck Armstrong. 

Company A — 1st Lieutenant, John A. Herring. 

2d " William Blanchford. 

Company B — Captain, Frank H. Barnhart. 

1st Lieutenant, Alfred J. Stephens. 
2d " Lucien Plucker. 

Company C — Captain Charles E. Brown. 

2d Lieutenant Augustus Mellon. 



10 Military Participating in the Ceremonies 

Company D — 1st Lieutenant William II. Wilcox. 
2d " Hugh Mitchell. 

Company E — 1st Lieutenant Samuel A. Losch. 
2d " Frank H. Forbes. 

Company F — Captain Jacob Paulus. 

1st Lieutenant Samuel Hess. 
2d " Thomas P. Davis. 

Company G — Captain Charles Forbes. 

1st Lieutenant Henry J. Christ. 
2d Lieutenant A. P. Kinney. 

Company II — Captain John A. Snyder. 

1st Lieutenant Joseph V. Kendall. 
2d " Henry S. Francis. 

Company I — Captain James H. Levan. 

Company K — Captain George V. Myers. 

2d Lieutenant George N. Merithew, 

Non- Commissioned Staff. 
Sergeant Major — Alexander P. Garret. 

Quartermaster Sergeant Clauser. 

Commissary Sergeant — Alfred W. Gift. 
Hospital Stewart — Alexander Schaefi'er. 

The following officers accompanied the Regiment as addi- 
tion staff : 

Captain Thomas F. Foster, of Co. D. 50th Regt. Pa, Vet 
Vol., Assistant Adjutant General, 2nd Brigade, 1st Division, 
9th Army Corps. 

1st Lieutenant John C. Chance, Quartermaster 9th Regt. 
Veteran Reserve Corps. 

The Regiment was accompanied by the Band of the 9th 
Regt. Veteran Reserve Corps, under the leadership of Mr. 
Joseph Winters ; and the Band of the 5Gth Mass. Vols, un- 
der the leadership of Mr. Markland. 

Col. W. II. Telford commands the 2nd Brigade, 1st Di- 
vision, 9th Army Corps. 



Military Participating in the Ceremonies. 11 

Lieutenant-Colonel Samuel K. Schwenk, commanded the 
Regiment. 

Colonel Telford was appointed Chief of Staff to Maj. Gen. 
Geary, during the ceremonies of July 4th, 1865. 

Regiment organized at Ilarrisburg, September 80th, 1861, 
under B. C. Christ. 

Colonel Telford, Lieutenant-Colonel Schwenk and Major 
Brumm, are the only original officers left with the Regiment. 
Regiment numbered 700 men. 

This Regiment was in 32 Battles, and 16 different States. 

ARTILLERY. 

The Artillery which participated in the ceremonies was 
detachments of one gun from each battery of the Horse Ar- 
tillery Brigade of the Army of the Potomac and a Section 
of Battery A of the 4th U. S. Artillery, which formerly be- 
longed to the Brigade. 

The Brigade which these guns represents, has served with 
the Cavalry Corps throughout the entire war, and has been 
with it in all its battles and raids. All the guns but one 
were at the battle of Gettysburg. 

The order of march was as follows : 

1. Brevet Brig.-Gen. J. M. Robertson, Captain 2d U. S. 

Artillery, Commanding Brigade. 
Brevet Captain J. G. Tumbull, 3rd Artillery, Acting 

Assistant Adjutant General. 
Assistant Surgeon Scheets. 

2. Colors and Color Guard. 

3. Buglers. 

4. Captain M. P. Miller, Battery C. and E., 4th U. S. Ar- 

tillery Commanding Guns. 

5. Battery C. and E., 4th U. S. Artillery. 

6. Battery C, erd U. S. Artillery, Lieut. J. R. Kelley. 

7. Battery I, 1st U. S. Artillery, Lieut. E. L. Garvin. 

8. Battery L, 5th U. S. Artillery, Lieut. Samuel Peoples. 

9. Battery M, 2nd U. S. Artillery, Lieut. William Egau, 
10. Battery D, 2nd U. S. Artillery, Lieut, W T. Vose, 



12 Military Participating in the Ceremonies. 



11. Battery B and L, 2nd U. S. Artillery, Lieut M. R. Loucks. 

12. Battery A, 2nd U. S. Artillery, Lieut Kinney. 

13. Battery A, 4th U. S. Artillery, \ 

-, a -r, v ^l tt o a .-ii > Lieut. Rufus King. 

14. Battery A, 4th U. S. Artillery, j b 

After the procession reached the stand in the Cemetery, 
and order had been restored, the Band played a piece of mu- 
sic which was followed by devotional exercises by the Rev. 
Stephen H. Tyng, D. D., as follows : 



REMARKS AND PRAYER 

BY 

REV. STEPHEN H. TYNG, D. D. 



Friends and Brethren : 

We are assembled on an occasion of great solemnity. We 
invoke the presence and the blessing of the all-seeing God. 
We acknowledge Him, as the God of our fathers, and of 
their children — we confess Him as the God of our nation and 
of its posterity — we acknowledge His power and His wisdom — 
His mercy and His providence — as displayed in the whole gov- 
ernment of our land. He has defended us in danger. He has 
been our shield in the day of battle. He has given us the 
victory. He is our strength. He has become our salva- 
vation. 

We meet this day under His protection, and with His guid- 
ance, to erect a monument of our gratitude for His goodness ; 
and to the honor of the faithful men whom He has been pleas- 
ed to make the glorious agents of our security and success. 
By their fidelity unto death, He has restored peace to our 
nation, given stability to our government, established union 
among our people, and renewed the prosperity and the happi- 
ness of our homes and our households. To God we owe the 
gift of such noble children of our common country. To 
them we owe the tribute, under Him, of the highest earthly 
honor, and the most abiding and reverend recognition. 

We are gathered here this day to proclaim, with humble, 
but glad hearts, our common obligations, to Him whose inspi- 
ration gave them fidelity, and to them, whose deeds and sac- 
rifices, we would hold in everlasting remembrance, 



14 Remarks by Rev. Tyng, D. D. 

We confess Him this day as the Gracious Giver of a divino 
revelation to us, in those Holy Scriptures, which we acknow- 
ledge to have been given by inspiration of God. That sac- 
red book we receive, as the foundation and rule of all relig- 
ious truth. The glorious redemption which it proclaims — ■ 
the gracious promises which it contains — the immortal hopes 
which it imparts — the holy rules which it impresses — the san j- 
tifying power and guidance which it exercises, as the infalli- 
ble word of the living God, we humbly, gratefully confess — ■ 
we honor the mighty Saviour whom it announces — we ask 
the teaching and guidance of the Holy Spirit whom it baa 
promised. 

Under this guidance we assemble, with solemn prayer and 
harmony, to vindicate the memory, and to declare the honor 
of our exalted dead — to testify our unchanging loyalty and 
love, to the country for which they died — to erect a monu- 
ment which shall stand a perpetual witness of their glorious 
achievements, and of our fellowship with them, in the great 
principles of Union, Loyalty and Liberty, for which their 
costly sacrifice was so willingly and so nobly made. 

Let me call you first to a few appropriate utterances from 
this Holy word of God : "Remember the days of old, con- 
sider the years of many generations ; ask thy Father and he 
will shew thee ; thy elders and they will tell thee. When 
the Most High divided to the nations their inheritance, 
when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of 
the people, according to the number of the children of Israel. 
Fur the Lord's portion is his people, Jacob is the lot of his 
inheritance." Deut. 32: 7—9. 

"We have heard with our ears, God, our fathers have 
told us, what work thou didst in their days, in the times of 
old. How thou didst drive out the heathen with thy hand, 
and plantedst them; how thou didst afiiict the people, and 
cast them out: For they got not the land in possession, by 
their own sword, neither did their own arm save them ; but 
tliy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy counte- 
nance, because thou hadot u iavur unto them." l's. 41 : 1 — S. 



Remarks by Rev. Tyng, D. D. 15 

"Happy art thou Israel : who is like unto thee, peo- 
ple, saved by the Lord, the shield of thy help, and who is the 
sword of thine excellency ! And thine enemies shall be 
found liars unto thee ; and thou shalt tread upon their high 
places." Deut. 33 : 29. 

"The Eternal God is thy refuge, arid underneath are the 
everlasting arms ; and he shall thrust out the enemy from 
before thee, and shall say, Destroy them." Deut. 33 : 27. 

"All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn unto 
the Lord ; and all the kindreds of the nations shall worship 
before thee. For the kingdom is the Lord's, and he is the 
Governor among the nations. A seed shall serve him ; it 
shall be accounted to the Lord for a generation. They shall 
come, and shall declare his righteousness unto a people that 
shall be born, that he hath done this." Psa, 22 : 27—31. 

"Instead of thy fathers, shall be thy children, whom thou 
mayest make princes in all lands. I will make thy name to 
be remembered in all generations ; therefore shall the people 
praise thee forever and ever. Psa. 45 : 16, 17. 

"If I forget thee, Jerusalem, let my right hand forget 
her cunning ; if I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave 
to the roof of my mouth ; if I prefer not Jerusalem above 
my chief joy." Psa, 137 : 5, 6. 

"Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness. 
Surely he shall not be moved forever ; the righteous shall be 
in everlasting remembrance." Psa. 112 : 4, 6. 

"Also the sons of the stranger that join themselves to the 
Lord to serve him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be his 
servants ; Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and 
make them joyful in my house of prayer. Even unto them 
will I give* in mine house and within my walls, a place and a 
name better than of sons and of daughters ; I will give them 
an everlasting name that shall not be cut off." Isaiah 
50 : 5-7. 

"And many that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake. 
And they that be wise, shall shine as the brightness of the 



16 Phayer by Rev. Tyng, D. D. 



firmament ; and they that turn many to righteousness as the 
stars, forever and ever." Dan. 12 : 2, 3. 

"Jesus said, I am the resurrection and the life ; he that 
believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live ; and 
whosoever liveth and believeth in me, shall never die." St. 
John 11 : 25, 26. 

"Verily, verily I say unto you, the time is coming, and 
now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God, 
and they that hear shall live." St. John 5 : 25. 

"For if we believe that Jesus died, and rose again, even 
so them also which sleep in Jesus, will God bring with Him." 
1 Thess. 4 : 14. 

"To him that overcometh, will I give to sit with me in my 
throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my 
Father in his throne." Rev. 3 : 21. 

"These are they which came out of great tribulation, and 
have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of 
the Lamb. Therefore are they before the throne of God, and 
serve him day and night in his temple, and he that sitteth on 
the throne shall dwell among them ; and God shall wipe away 
all tears from their eyes." Rev. 7 : 14 — 17. 

"And I heard a voice from heaven, saying unto me, Write, 
Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth : 
Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors ; 
and their works do follow them." Rev. 14 : 13. 

Under the guidance of these words of God let us unite in 

PRAYER. 

God, whose days are without end, who art from ever- 
lasting and inhabitest eternity, we bow in homage before 
Thy throne. 

To Thee belong the kingdom, and the power, and the 
Mory forever. In thine hand our breath is, and thino arc 
all our ways. 

We behold Thee in the glories of thy creation, and adore 
the Yvisdom with which thou hast made them all. The hea- 



Prayer by Rev. Tyno, D. D. 17 

vens declare thy glory. The earth is filled with thy goodnesa. 
All creatures wait upon Thee, and Thou givest them their 
meat in due season. 

We acknowledge Thy love in the redemption which Thou 
hast revealed to sinful men in Thy Word ; removing their 
condemnation by a divine sacrifice and ransom ; unfolding to 
their acceptance glorious and sustaining hopes of eternal life; 
displaying the victory of pardoning grace over human sin, 
and of everlasting life over mortal death in the triumphant 
resurrection of Thy dear Son ; presenting an assurance of 
glory to all who believe in Him, though they die, in His as- 
cension to the throne and kingdom, and through His all-suffi- 
cient merit, and His unceasing intercession. 

We praise Thee for that Holy Spirit whom Thou hast sent 
in His name, and for His sake, to be the Comforter of Thy 
people, and to lead them there, whither our Saviour Christ 
has gone before. We bless Thee ibr this new and living way 
of access for sinners to Thy throne of grace. 

Cheered by this hope which Thy glorious gospel gives, and 
adoring the grace which has bestowed it upon us, we are 
gathered here this day to offer our united praise to Thee for 
Thy gracious providence and government over our nation ; 
and to commemorate before Thee the glorious and inspiring 
record of the noble dead, by whose energy and faithfulness 
the security of our country has been maintained, its peace 
restored, and its cherished Union and integrity preserved. 

The memories of this day lead us, God, in every year to 
Thee. Wanderers ready U> perish, were our fathers, when 
Thou didst protect them, in the origin of their history here. 
Contending for liberty and life, for themselves and their 
children, against oppression and superior power, were they, 
in the early struggles of our nation's childhood, where Thou 
didst maintain their right, and gave them the victory. 

Thy grace adorned them with the virtues, in the record of 
which we rejoice. Thy watchful care and guidance carried 
them through a warfare, displaying a patriotism, an earnest- 
ness of sincerity, a devotion to their country's welfare, and 
3 



18 Thayer by Rev. Tyno, D. D. 

a love for the rights and liberty of man, which have been the 
highest honor to our nation. 

It was Thou, God, who didst give them wisdom in coun- 
sel, courage in war, endurance in depression and distress, 
patience amidst protracted disaster, and final victory over the 
hosts of their opposers. It wa3 Thou who didst teach them 
to establish a nation in peace, and a government in wise, 
righteous and equitable operation, over the people whom Thy 
Providence collected beneath it. 

In all the past years of this favored nation, Thou hast been 
our fathers' God and our God. Thou hast guarded us in 
foreign wars, defended us by land and by sea, multiplied 
upon us the blessings of civilization and advancement, of re- 
ligious freedom and truth. Thou hast given to every class 
of our people their due measure of prosperity ; and hast se- 
cured for them, under wise and equal laws, the hopes and 
rights of all. Thou hast ma.de a little one to become a strong 
nation, and hast here poured out the treasures of Thy mercy, 
in every varied shape of blessing, upon the millions who have 
here fed upon Thy goodness, and acknowledge Thee as the 
God of our salvation. 

To Thee, God, we owe these long succeeding years of 
peace, prosperity, and social exaltation. To Thee we owe 
that long succession of wise and honored men, whom thou 
hast raised up to be the rulers of this people. To Thee we 
owe that ruling in justice, and in tl\e fear of the Lord, which 
has so honorably, and habitually distinguished our national 
history. 

The distinction and exaltation which our fathers have at- 
tained for us, among the nations of the earth, by the success 
of their administration, and the fidelity of their personal 
government, wc acknowledge still to be wholly Thy gift, who 
rulcst as the Governor over all the earth, and puttcst down 
one and settcst up another. 

As we survey the whole history of our nation, in peace 
and war; in its government and its people; in its intellectual 
advancement and social exaltation ; in its religious privileges 



Prayer by Rev. Tyng, D. D. 19 

and material gains ; in the great principles which it has es- 
tablished ; and in the example of power acting in justice and 
forbearance, which it has displayed in all relations, and to- 
ward all people ; we confess, God, that all which we have 
enjoyed and possessed has been Thy gift ; and not unto us, 
but unto Thy name, Lord, our God, be all the praise. 

Each year, Lord, has justly brought us, on this day, to offer 

unto Thee the tribute of our thanksgiving and the homage 

of our praise. Generation after generation have thus adored 

Thee, as the God who alone has brought salvation unto them. 

But we are gathered on a day which calls for very peculiar 
acknowledgments of our gratitude to Thee ; and in a place, 
and for an especial occasion, which present new and impres- 
sive demands for our humble thanksgiving, our submissive 
penitence, our chastened but rejoicing memory, our sympa- 
thyzing and benevolent tenderness, our renewed fidelity to 
our country's welfare, and our fixed and indomitable purpose 
to maintain the authority which Thou hast established for us, 
and the liberty and order which thou hast arranged and ap- 
pointed. 

We are this day, a nation, free, united, independent and at 
peace — because Thou, our gracious God, hast defended us 
from a violent and ungodly conspiracy — hast preserved us 
through a terrific warfare — hast given us unlimited victory, 
and hast set up Thy dominion over us, in overturning the 
wickedness of man's rebellion, and taking the violent in their 
own craftiness ; in breaking the oppressor's yoke, in giving 
liberty to the prisoner, and freedom to the bruised and suffer- 
ing slave ; in opening to all the children of sorrow a door of 
hope in the midst of trial, and a day of promise and glory 
after a long night of weeping and despair. 

let this day bring this rejoicing nation to the footstool 
of Thy throne. Wide as the triumphs of the assembling 
people may spread, may the higher triumphs of Thy grace 
and mercy be still more gracefully acknowledged, and thank- 
fully enumerated and called to mind. 

"God, it is Thy patience mil '■ >luce<3 



20 Prayer dy Rev. Tyng, D. D. 

us this day where we are, and made us what we are. Suffer 
us not to say that our wisdom, or the mightiness of our hand T 
have gained this triumph ; or that anything in us has de- 
served its bestowal. In the very degree in which Thou hast 
exalted us, enable us to humble ourselves before Thee ; and 
while Thou art speaking unto us, in language of amazing 
encouragement, may we sincerely speak to Thee, in the lan- 
guage of self-renouncing penitence, and deeper earnestness 
of desires and purpose, in everything to do Thy will. 

As we look back this day, over all this conflict ended — 
this journey through deep waters completed — we bless Thee 
anew, God, for the great and faithful men whom Thou hast 
raised up among us, in civil, military and naval life, mighty 
in counsel, triumphant in battle, and glorious in contests on 
the deep. But above all, we praise Thee, for that beloved 
and exalted ruler, whom Thou didst set over us, under whose 
shadow we rejoiced, whose example in life was our faithful 
guide ; whose gentle and forbearing administration was an 
honor to humanity, and in whose death, though it leaves him 
enshrined in our hearts, in the grateful affection of millions 
of his fellow-citizens, we have felt bereaved beyond the com- 
mon example of mankind. 

With our thanksgivings for all the past, we offer this day, 
God, our earnest prayers for the abiding welfare, prosper- 
ity and peace of our beloved country. We pray Thee to 
maintain the government which Thou has given us, against 
all assaults, and to multiply upon every generation of our 
people, the social and personal blessings which it is adapted 
to bestow and secure. May it ever be administered in right- 
eousness, and wise and upright rulers be given to this people. 
Defend the nation from the violence of rebellion, and rescue 
them from the mutual recriminations of party spirit. Guard 
and direct the President of the United States in the faithful 
discharge of his responsible duties ; and pour Thy gracious 
blessings, both spiritual and temporal, for time and for eter- 
nity, upon him and his household. Give to all who arc in 
office under him, the spirit of wisdom and lidelity, in the ex- 



Prayer by Rev. Tyng, D. D. 21 

ccution of their various trusts. And ever raise up men fear- 
ing God and working righteousness, to administer the gov- 
ernment over Thy people, in all the branches and relations of 
its responsibility. Thus, under the shadow of Thy wing, 
may our land abide and our people dwell, seeking the good of 
this nation, and speaking peace to all the inhabitants thereof. 

And now, Lord, who art especially the God of the suf- 
fering, of the widow and the fatherless, we unite to pray for 
all whom this bitter warfare hath bereaved, or reduced to 
conditions of want or suffering. We are assembled to lay 
the corner-stone of a monument to soldiers who freely poured 
forth their blood upon this spot, in their country's defence. 
The bodies of many who were dear and cherished in the 
households of our nation, lie buried around us here. While 
we honor their memory, and would perpetuate the record of 
their renown, their widows and their orphans we commend to 
Thee. Their many wounded companions, the charge upon 
their country's gratitude and kindness, we present, also, be- 
fore* Thee. Awaken a spirit of liberal kindness and just 
remuneration toward them all, among this whole people ; and 
bless, prosper, and reward every effort which may be made 
for their comfort and relief. Spread the influence and power 
of that gospel which teaches love to God and love to man, as 
the duty and privilege of all who hear it, in every portion of 
our land, and make this nation an example and an agent of 
its influence in blessing throughout all the earth. 

May all the exercises of this day be made to awaken a 
spirit of union, loyalty and love, among those who are here 
assembled, and all the inhabitants of this land. And may 
this monument, and this ground, consecrated by the honored 
dead, be, in years to come, a token and a witness to all who 
shall ever visit this place, of Thy blessing upon this people, 
and of all the interests which Thou hast preserved for them, 
and an admonition to every coming generation, that Thy 
favor is life, and Thy loving kindness is better than life. 

Thus, God, do we look up unto Thee in praise and 
prayer, and ask Thine acceptance and favor in the name of 
our glorious Lord and Saviour Jtbus Christ. Amen. 



The National Union Musical Association of Baltimore, then 
sung "French's Hymn," the words of which arc as follows : 

'T is holy ground, — 
This spot, where, in their greaves, 
We place our country's braves, 
Who fell in Freedom's holy cause, 
Fighting for liberties and laws ; 

Let tears abound. 

Here let them rest ; 
And summer's heat and winter's cold 
Shall glow and freeze above this mould, — 
A thousand years shall pass away, — 
A nation still shall mourn this clay, 

Which now is blest. 

Here, where they fell, 
Oft shall the widow's tear be shed 
Oft shall fond parents mourn their dead ; 
The orphan here shall kneel and weep, 
And maidens, where their lovers sleep, 

Their woes shall tell. 

Great God in heaven ! 
Shall all this sacred blood be shed ? 
Shall we thus mourn our glorious dead ? 
Oh, shall the end be wrath and woe, 
The knell of Freedom's overthrow, 

A country riven ? 

It will not be 1 
Wc trust, God 1 thy gracious power 
To aid us in our darkest hour. 
Thi i be our prayer, — "0 Father I save 
A people's freedom from its grave. 

All praise tu Thee!" 



THE PRESIDENT'S LETTER. 



His Excellency, Andrew Johnson, President of the United 
States, having been prevented from being present, by reason 
of severe illness, sent the Marshal of the District of Colum- 
bia, Judge Gooding, as his special messenger, who, presented 
the following communication from His Excellency : 

Executive Mansion, "1 
Washington, D. C, July 3, 1865. / 

Mr. David Wills, Chairman, §-c, Gettysburg, Pa. 

Dear Sir : I had promised myself the pleasure of par- 
ticipating in person in the proceedings at Gettysburg to- 
morrow. That pleasure, owing to my indisposition, I am 
reluctantly compelled to forego. I should have been pleased, 
standing on that twice consecrated spot, to share with you 
your joy at the return of peace, to greet with you the sur- 
viving heroes of the war who come back with light hearts, 
though heavy laden with honors, and with you to drop grate- 
ful tears to the memory of those that will never return. 

Unable to do so in person, I can only send you my greet- 
ings, and assure you of my full sympathy with the purpose 
and spirit of your exercises to-morrow. Of all the anniversa- 
ries of the Declaration of Independence, none has been more 
important and significant than that upon which you assemble. 

Four years of struggle for our nation's life have been 
crowned with success ; armed treason is swept from the land ; 
our ports are re-opened ; our relations with other nations aro 
of the most satisfactory character ; our internal commerce is 
free ; our soldiers and sailors resume the peaceful pursuits of civil 
life ; our flag floats in every breeze ; and the only barrier to 
our national progress — human slavery — is forever at an 
end. Let us trust that oach recurring Fourth of July shall 



24 The President's Letter. 

find our nation stronger in numbers — stronger in wealth. — 
stronger in the harmony of its citizens — stronger in its de- 
votion to nationality and freedom. 

As I have often said, I believe that God sent this people 
on a mission among the nations of the earth, and that when 
lie founded our nation He founded it in perpetuity. That 
faith sustained me through the struggle that is past. It sus- 
tains me now, that new duties are devolved upon me and new 
dangers threaten us. I feel that whatever the means He uses 
the Almighty is determined to preserve us as a people. 

And since I know the love our fellow-citizens bear their 
country, and the sacrifices they have made for it, my abiding 
faith has become stronger than ever that a "frovernment of 
the people" is the strongest as well as the best of governments. 

In your joy to-morrow, I trust you will not forget the 
thousands of whites, as well as blacks, whom the war has 
emancipated, who will hail this Fourth of July with a de- 
light which no previous Declaration of Independence ever 
gave them. Controlled so long by ambitious, selfish leaders, 
who used them for their own unworthy ends, they are now 
free to serve and cherish the government against whose life 
they, in their blindness, struck. I am greatly mistaken if 
in the States lately in rebellion we do not henceforward have 
an exhibition of such loyalty and patriotism as were never 
seen nor felt there before. 

When you have consecrated a National Cemetery, you are 
to lay the corner-stone of a national monument, which, in all 
human probability, will rise to the full height and proportion 
you design. Noble as this monument of stone may be, it 
will be but a faint symbol of the grand monument which, if 
we do our duty, we shall raise among the nations of the 
earth upon the foundation laid nine and eighty years ago in 
Philadelphia. Time shall wear away and crumble this mon- 
ument, but that, based as it is, upon the consent, virtue, 
patriotism and intelligence of the people, each year shall 
make firmer and more imposing. 

Yuur friend and fellow-citizen, 

SDBJEW JOHNSON. 



- V 



The Gettysburg Monumental Ode was then sung by 
the National Union Musical Association, in the following 
words : 

This battle-field — our nation's glory, — 
Where sweetly sleep our fallen braves, 

Proclaims aloud the tragic story — 
The story of their hallow'd graves ! 

Yes ! here on Gettysburg's sad plain, 

This monument the tale will tell, 
That thousands for their flag was slain — 

Whilst fighting for the Union — fell! 

Here red artillery's deadly fire 

Mow'd squadrons down in dread array ; 

Here Meade compelled Lee to retire, 
And Howard held his ground that day. 

Then let those tatter'd banners wave — 

Forever sacred be this ground I 
Sing pagans to those warriors brave, 

And be their deeds with glory crown'd ! 

Wives, mothers, sisters, orphans dear, 
Shall gather round each clay-cold bed, 

And mourn their lov'd ones buried here — 
Their husbands, fathers, brothers dead. 

Now on this consecrated ground, 

Baptiz'd with -patriots' sacred blood, 
We dedicate each glorious mound 

To the Union Battle-Flag and God! 

4 



LAYING OF THE CORNER-STONE. 



The foundation stone of the Monument was then laid with 
appropriate ceremonies, by the Society of Free Masons, un- 
der the auspices of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania. 

The following is a list of the articles deposited in the 
Comer-Stone. 

UNITED STATES. 

Declaration of Independence. 

Articles of Confederation. 

Constitution of the United States. 

Washington's Farewell Address. 

Names of the Presidents and Vice Presidents of the Uni- 
ted States. 

Names of the Members and Officers of the Senate and 
House of Representatives of the United States. 

Names of the Members of the Cabinet. 

Names of the Ministers of the United States at Foreign 
Courts. 

Messages of President Lincoln. 

Reports of the Secretary of War and Lieutenant-General 
Grant. 

Major-General George G. Meade's Report of the Battle of 
Gettysburg. 

Copies of President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamations 
and last Inaugural Address. 

Coins of the United States. 

MAINE. 

Copy of the Constitution of the State of Maine. 
Messages of the Governors of Maine, from 18G1 to 1864. 
Adjutant-General's Reports, 1861 to 1864. 



List of Articles in the Corner-Stone. 27 



NEW HAMPSHIRE. 

Copy of the Constitution of the State of New Hampshire. 
Adjutant-General's Report. 

VERMONT. 

Messages of the Governors of Vermont, from 1861 to 1864. 
Adjutant-General's Reports, 1861 to 1864. 

MASSACHUSETTS. 

Copy of the Constitution of the State of Massachusetts, 
Messages of Governors of Massachusetts, 1861 to 1864. 
Adjutant-General's Report, 1861 to 1864. 

RHODE ISLAND. 

Copy of the Constitution of the State of Rhode Island. 

Proclamation of His Excellency James Y. Smith, on the 
death of President Lincoln. 

Resolutions of the Legislature of Rhode Island in relation 
to the Re-construction of the States recently in Rebellion. 

CONNECTICUT. 

Copy of the Constitution of the State of Connecticut. 

1st. Medallion Medal with the State Coat-of-Arms on the 
one side, and on the other the Number of Soldiers furnished 
for the War by Connecticut, with the Inscription, "In Honor 
of Soldiers of Connecticut," who aided in the cause of Lib- 
erty, 1861 to 1865. 

2nd. The Complete Catalogue of the Volunteer Force of 
Connecticut, their Organization and Casualties. 

3rd. Proclamation of Governor Buckingham, issued in 
April, 1864. 

4th. Messages of Governor Buckingham since May, 1861. 

5th. Legislative and State Government Statistics for six- 
teen years, ending with 1865. 



28 List of Articles in the Corner-Stone. 

NEW YORK. 

Copy of the Constitution of the State of New York. 

Copy of His Excellency R. E. Fenton's Message, 1865. 

Copy of the Adjutant-General's Reports for 1864 and 
1865. 

Copy of Letters of General Meigs, Quartermaster-Gen- 
eral. U. S. A. 

Copy of Act to provide a Suitable Repository for the Re- 
cords of the War. 

Report of Bureau of Military Record, 1805. 

NEW JERSEY. 

Copy of the Constitution of the State- of New Jersey. 

List of Names of the State Officers, Members of the Sen- 
ate and Assembly. 

Messages of the Governor of New Jersey, from 1861 to 
1864, inclusive. 

Register of the Commanding Officers of the New Jersey 
Volunteers, and 

Report of the Adjutant-General, from 1861 to 1865, in- 
clusive. 

Report of the Quartermaster-General of New Jersey, from 
1861 to 1864, inclusive. 

PENNSYLVANIA. 

1st. A Copy of the Constitution of the State of Pennsyl- 
vania. 

2nd. Inaugural Address of Governor Andrew G. Curtin, 
on the 15th of January, 1861. 

3rd. Special Message of Governor Curtin to the Legisla- 
ture, April 9th, 1861, recommending the establishment of a 
Military Bureau at the Capitol of the State, and asserting 
the fidelity of Pennsylvania to the Constitution and Union. 

4th. Proclamation of Governor Curtin, issued April 20th, 
1861, convening the Legislature in Extra Session. 

5th. Message of Governor Curtin to the Legislature at 
Extra Session, on the' 30th of April, 1861, recommending 



List of Articles in the Corner-Stone. 29 



inter alia, the immediate Organization of the Pennsylvania 
Reserve Volunteer Corps. 

6th. Act of the Legislature, approved 15th May, 1861, 
"to create a Loan and to provide for arming the State," and 
authorizing the Organization of the Pennsylvania Reserve 
Volunteer Corps. 

7th. Pamphlet, containing the Military Laws of Pennsyl- 
vania, passed at the Sessions of the Legislature of 1861. 

8th. Message of Governor Curtin to the Legislature at 
regular Session, January 8th, 1862. 

9th. Message of Governor Curtin to the Legislature at 
regular Session, January 7th, 1863. 

10th. Proceedings of Commissioners appointed by the 
Governors of the different States, which have Soldiers buried 
in the Soldiers' National Cemetery at Gettysburg, at a Meet- 
ing held in Harrisburg, Pa., December 17th, 1863. 

11th. Message of Governor Curtin to the Legislature at 
regular Session, January 7th, 1864. 

12th. Pamphlet, containing Second Inaugural Address of 
Governor Curtin, January 19th, 1864, and Inaugural Cere- 
monies, as published by order of the Legislature. 

13th. Report of Special Committee of the Legislature, 
March 31st, 1864, to whom was referred so much of the 
Governor's Annual Message, read January 7th, 1864, as re- 
lates to the Gettysburg Cemetery, together with Report of 
David Wills, Esq., of Gettysburg, Agent for A. G. Curtin, 
Governor of Pennsylvania, made to said Committee, March 
21st, 1864. 

14th. Copy of an Act of the Legislature of Pennsylvania 
to incorporate the Soldiers' National Cemetery, approved 
March 25th, 1864. 

15th. Copy of an Act of the Legislature of Pennsylvania^ 
to incorporate the Gettysburg Battle-field Memorial Associa- 
tion, approved May 4th, 1864. 

16th. Proclamation of Governor Curtin, issued August lst ? 
1864, convening the Legislature of Pennsylvania in Extra 
Session. 



80 List of Articles in the Corner-Stone. 

17th. Message of Governor Curtin to Legislature at Extra 
Session, August 9th, 1864. 

18th. Message of Governor Curtin to Legislature at regu- 
lar Session, January 4th, 1865. 

19 th. Complete File of General Orders, issued from Head 
Quarters Pennsylvania Militia, from 1861 to January 1865, 
inclusive. 

20th. Reports of Adjutant-General, from 1861 to 1864, 
inclusive. 

21st. orta of Quartermaster-General, from 1861 to 

1864, inclusive. 

[. Reports of Commissary-General, from 1861 to 1864, 
inclusive. 

23rd. Reports of Surgeon-General, from 1861 to 1864, 
inclusive. 

24th. Specimen of Commission, in- blank, with an Impres- 
sion of the Great Seal of the State, issued by Governor 
Curtin to Officers in Service during the Rebellion. 

The foregoing are contained in a Copper Box marked, 
"Pennsylvania." 

DELAWARE. 
Copy of the Constitution of the State of Delaware. 
Messages of Governor of Delaware, 1861 to 1864. 
Adjutant-General's Reports, 1861 to 1864. 

MARYLAND. 

Copy of the Constitution of the State of Maryland. 
Messages of Governor of Maryland, 1861 to 1864. 
Adjutant-General's Report from 1861 to 1864. 

WEST VIRGINIA. 

Copy of the Constitution of the State of West Virginia, 
Acts of the Legislature of the State of West Virginia, 
since its formation to 1 

Message of the Governor of West Virginia. 
Reports of the Governor of West Virginia. 



List of Articles in the Corner-Stone. 31 

OHIO. 

Copy of the Constitution of the State of Ohio. 

Copy of the Military Laws of Ohio. 

Army Register of Ohio Volunteers in the Service of the 
United States. 

Annual Report of the Surgeon-General of the State of 
Ohio. 

Annual Report of the Quartermaster-General of Ohio. 

Annual Report of the Adjutant-General of Ohio for 1865. 

Annual Message of the Governor of Ohio to the Fifty- 
Sixth General Assembly, January, 1865. 

Biographical Sketches of the Fifty-Sixth Senate and 
House of Representatives of Ohio. 

INDIANA. 

Copy of the Constitution of the State of Indiana. 
Messages of the Governor of Indiana, 1861 to 1864. 
Adjutant-General's Reports from 1861 to 1864. 

ILLINOIS. 

Copy of the Constitution of the State of Illinois. 
Messages of Governor of Illinois from 1861 to 1864. 
Adjutant-General's Reports 1861 to 1864. 

MICHIGAN. 

Silver Medallion with State Coat-of-Arms on one side and 
on the other the number of Soldiers furnished by Michigan 
for the War (91,193) with this inscription, ' ; In honor of the 
91,198 Michigan Soldiers who aided in perpetuating Ameri- 
can Liberty 1861—1865." 

The names on parchment of the Michigan Officers and 
Soldiers killed at Gettysburg, prepared by Hon. Thomas W, 
Ferry, Commissioner for the State in the Board of Managers 
of the Gettysburg National Cemetery. 

List on parchment of Michigan Regiments, Companies and 
Batteries sent to the field during the War. 



32 List of Articles in the Corner-Stone. 

Adjutant-General's Reports as far as published 1801, '02, 
and '63, full bound in leather, 2 vols. 

Two commissions such as have been issued by this State 
for Commissioned Officers. 

Michigan resolutions on the state of the Union, February 
2d, 1861. 

Proclamation of Governor Blair, April 16th, 1861. First 
call for troops. 

Governor Blair's Message to Extra Session, May 1861. 

An Act to provide a Military Force, approved May 10th, 
1861. 

Governor Blair's Message to Extra Session, January 2nd, 
1862. 

Governor Blair's Message to Regular Session, January 7th, 
1863. 

Governor Blair's Message to Extra Session, January 19th, 
1864. 

Governor Blair's Message to Regular Session, January 
4th, 1865. 

Governor Crapo's Message to Regular Session, January 
4th, 1865. 

Michigan resolutions on the state of the Union, March 
18th, 1805. 

Proclamation of Governor Crapo, June 14th, 1805. Wel- 
coming the returning troops, — (above documents bound in 
one volume.) 

"Legislative Manuel of Michigan," contents as follows: 
Calendar 1865-6-7. Constitution of the United States. 

Constitution of the State of Michigan ; Counties, Cities 
and Townships in Michigan, with Census of 1845-50-54-60 
and 04. 

Representative Districts of Michigan and the names of 
members of State Senate and House of Representatives for 
1865. 

Soldiers vote 1864. 

State Officers and Deputies and State Military Officers, 
1865. 



List of Articles in the Corner-Stone. 



Judicial Circuits with names and residences of Judges. 

Federal Officers of Michigan, 1865. 

Governors of Michigan Territory, from 1805, to include 
1835. 

Governors and Lieutenant-Governors of the State of 
Michigan, from 1835, to include 1865. 

Speakers of the House of Representatives of the Legisla- 
ture of Michigan from 1835, to include 1865. 

United States Senators from Michigan, from 1836, to in- 
clude 1865. 

Representatives in Congress from Michigan, from 1836, to 
include 1865. 

The above are all contained in a small Copper Box marked 
"State of Michigan, 1865," which is 9x5X-± inches. 

WISCONSIN. 

Copy of the Constitution of the State of Wisconsin. 
Governor's Message and accompanying Documents, 1865. 
Legislative Manual for 1865. 
Copy of the Adjutant-General's Report of Wisconsin, 1864. 

MINNESOTA. 

Copy of the Constitution of the State of Minnesota. 

Copy of the Roll of Honor of Minnesota troops at the 
battle of Gettysburg. 

Statement of troops furnished by the State of Minnesota 
during the present War. 

MISCELLANEOUS. 

Copies of Charter and Proceedings of the Board of Man- 
agers of the "Soldiers' National Cemetery," at Gettysburg, 
Pa. 

Copy of Proceedings at the Consecration of the "Soldiers' 
National Cemetery," at Gettysburg, Pa. 

A List of the Names of the Soldiers buried in the "Sol- 
diers' National Cemetery." 

5 



34 Lift of Articles i\ che Cor^eR-StoNE. 



Tabular List' of Corps and Regimental Organizations of 
the Array of The Potomac in the Battle at Gettysburg. 

Colonel Batchelder's Drawing of the Battle-field of Get- 
tysburg. 

Copy of the Constitution, of the different States of the 
Union not heretofore mentioned, contained in a book entitled 
"A m erica n Constitutions." 

A large Silver Medal of President Lincoln, with appropri- 
ate inscriptions; presented by Col. John S. Warner, of the 
War of 1812. 

Copy of Reports of the United States Christian Commis- 
sion, accompanied with its Silver Badge. 

Copy of the Report of the United States Sanitary Com- 
mission. 

Copy of the Design of the Monument for the "Soldiers' 
National Cemetery," together with an Artistic Description. 

Copy of Programme of Ceremonies of Laying the Corner- 
stone, with a copy of the Masonic Ceremonies of the Grand 
Lodge of Pennsylvania, A. Y. M., together with a full list 
of the Grand Officers who officiated in laying the Corner- 
stone and a copy of Arrangements of Masonic Procession 
on said occasion. 

Copy of Ahimon Rezon. 

Proceedings of Grand Lodge and Masonic Register. 

Do O 

Copy of Music sung by the Union Musical Association of 
Baltimore, at the Ceremonies of Laying the Corner-Stone. 
Manuscript List of Articles deposited in Corner-Stone. 

This Ceremony was followed by a piece of Music played 
by one of the Military Bands. 



ORATION. 



As I stand here to-day before a peaceful audience, 
composed as it is of beautiful ladies, joyous children, 
and happy citizens, and think of my last visit to this 
place two years ago, and of the terrible scenes in 
which it was my lot to bear a part, I cannot help ex- 
claiming, "How changed! how changed!" 

It is the same rich landscape, broad and beautiful, 
covered with every variety of natural objects to please 
the eye. 

The same wooded ridges and cultivated fields ; 
the same neat little town clinging to the hill-side ; 
the same broad avenues of approach ; the same ra- 
vines and creeks — but, thank God! the awful mag- 
nificence of hosts arrayed against each other in 
deadly strife is wanting. 

Yonder heights are no longer crowned with hos- 
tile cannon; the valleys do not reverberate with 
their fearful roar ; the groves and the houses do not 
give back the indescribable peal of the musketry 
fire. 

And oh! how like a dream to-day seems that sad 
spectacle of broken tombstones, prostrate lences. 



36 Oration. 

and the ground strewn with our own wounded and 
dead companions! 

Then follows, after battle, the mingling of friends 
and enemies, with suffering depicted in all possible 
modes of portraiture. 

The surgeons, with resolute hearts and bloody 
hands; the pale faces of relatives searching for dear 
ones, the busy Sanitary and Christian workers — all 
pass before my mind in group after group. 

My friends, my companions, my countrymen, suf- 
fer me to congratulate you anew to-day, this 4th 
day of July, 18G5, that this sad work is completely 
done, and that sweet peace has really dawned upon 
us. 

On the 19th of November, 1863, this National 
Cemetery, a pious tribute to manliness and virtue, 
was consecrated. 

The Hon. Edward Everett delivered an address 
in his own rich, clear, elegant style, which, having 
been published, has long ago become historical, and 
affords us a complete and graphic account of the 
campaign and battle of Gettysburg". I am deeply 
grateful to this noble patriot for his indefatigable in- 
dustry in securing facts, and for the clear narrative 
he has left us of this battle, in which every living 
loyal soldier who fought here, is now proud to have 
borne a part. 

He, joining the patriotic band of those that arc 
honored by his eloquence, has gone to his reward ; 



Oration. 87 

and let his memory ever be mingled with those here, 
upon whose graves he so earnestly invoked your 
benediction. 

Mr. Everett was followed by the few remarkable 
words of President Lincoln. 

While Mr. Lincoln's name is so near and dear to 
us, and the memory of his work and sacrifice so 
fresh, I deem it not inappropriate to repeat his own 
words : 

"Fourscore and seven years ago our fathers 
broughl forth upon this continent a new nation, con- 
ceived in liberty, and dedicated 1o the proposition 
that all men are created equal. 

"Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing 
whether that nation, or any nation, so conceived and 
so dedicated, can long endure. 

"We are met on a great battle-field of that war. 
We are met to dedicate a portion of it as the final 
resting place of those who here gave their lives that 
that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and 
proper that we should do this. 

"But in a larger sense we cannot dedicate, we 
cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground. 
The brave men, living and dead, who struggled 
here, have consecrated it far above our power to add 
or detract. 

"The world will little note, nor long remember, 
what we say here, but it can never forget what they 
did here. 



38 Oration. 

u It is for us, the living, rather to be dedicated here 
to the unfinished work that they have thus far so 
nobly carried on. 

"It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the 
great task remaining before us — that from these 
honored dead we take increased devotion to the 
cause for which they here gave the last full measure 
of devotion — that we here highly resolve that the 
dead shall not have died in vain — that the nation 
shall, under God, have a new birth of freedom, and 
that the government of the people, by the people, 
and for the people, shall not perish from the earth." 

The civil war is ended ; the test was complete. 
He, Abraham Lincoln, never forgot his own dedica- 
tion till the work was finished. 

He did display even increased devotion if it were 
possible. 

The dead did not die in vain, and the nation has 
experienced already the new birth of freedom of 
which he spoke. 

Oh that in the last throes of darkness and crime 
God had seen it good to have spared us that great 
heart, out of which proceeded such welcome words 
of truth and encouragement ! 

How very much of grateful recollection clusters 
around the name of Abraham Lincoln as we pro- 
nounce it here among the dead who have died that 
our nation might not perish from the earth ! 

These grounds have already been consecrated, and 



Oration. 39 

are doubly sacred from the memory of our brethren 
who lie here, and from the association with those 
remarkable men, Mr. Everett and Mr. Lincoln, who 
wave tone to the exercises of consecration two years 
aoo, whose own bodies are now resting beneath the 
sod, but whose spirit is still living, and unmistakably 
animating everv true American heart this day. 

We have now been called to lay the corner-stone 
of a monument. 

This monument is not a mere family record, not 
the simple memorial of individual fame, nor the 
silent tribute to genius. 

It is raised to the soldier. It is a memorial of his 
life and his noble death. 

It embraces a patriotic brotherhood of heroes in 
its inscriptions, and is an unceasing herald of labor, 
suffering, union, liberty, and sacrifice. 

Let us then, as is proper on such an occasion as 
this, give a few thoughts to the American soldier. 

We have now embraced under this generic name 
of soldier, the dutiful officer, the volunteer soldier, 
the regular, the colored, and the conscript ; but in 
my remarks I will present you the private volunteer 
as the representative American soldier. 

In the early part of 1861, the true citizen heard 
that traitors at Washington had formed a conspiracy 
to overthrow the Government, and soon after, that 
the stars and stripes had been fired upon and had 
been hauled down at the bidding of an armed ene- 



40 Oration. 

my in South Carolina; that the Capitol of the na- 
tion was threatened, and that our new President had 
called for help. 

How quickly the citizen answered the call ! 

Almost like magic he sprang forth a soldier. 

His farm or his bench, his desk or his counter, 
was left behind, and you find him marching through 
the then gloomy, flagless, defiant streets of Balti- 
more, fully equipped for service, with uniform gray, 
blue, red, or green — it then mattered not; with 
knapsack, cartridge-box, musket and bayonet, his 
outfit was all that was required. 

He was a little awkward, his accoutrements much 
awry, his will unsubdued. 

He did not keep step to music, nor always lock 
step with his companions. He had scarcely ever 
fired a musket, but he had become a soldier, put on 
the soldier's garb, set his face towards the enemy, 
and, God willing, he purposed never to turn back 
till the soldier's work was done. 

You meet him at Washington (on Meridian Hill 
perhaps); discipline and drill seize upon him, re- 
strain his liberty, and mould his body. Colonels, 
Captains, Lieutenants, and Sergeants, his former 
equals, order him about, and he must obey them. 
Oh what days ! and oh what nights ! Where is 
home and affection ? "Where is the soft bed and the 
loaded table ? Change of climate, change of food, 
want of rest, want of all kinds of old things, and an 



Oration. 41 

iiifiux of all sorts of new things, make him sick — 
yes, really sick in body and soul. 

But, in spite of a few doses of quinine and a 
wholesome hospital bed and diet, (as the soldier of 
'01 remembers them,) his vigorous constitution and 
indomitable heart prevail, so that he is soon able to 
cross the Long Bridge and invade the sacred red 
clay of Virginia, with his companions in arms. Yet, 
perhaps, should you now observe him very closely, 
you will perceive his enthusiasm increasing faster 
even than his strength. 

He is on the enemy's side of the river; now for 
strict guard duty ; now for the lonely picket amid 
the thickets, where men are killed by ambushed foes. 

How the eye and the ear, and, may I say it, the 
heart, are quickened in these new and trying vigils. 

Before long, however, the soldier is inured to 
these things ; he becomes familiar with every stump, 
tree, and pathway of approach, and his trusty gun, 
and stouter heart, defy any secret foe. 

Presently you find him on the road to battle ; the 
hot weather of July, the usual load, the superadded 
twenty extra rounds of cartridges, and three days 
rations strung to his neck, and the long weary march, 
quite exhaust his strength during the very first day. 
He aches to leave the ranks and rest, but no ! no ! 
He did not leave home for the ignominious name of 
"straggler" and "skulker." Cost what it may, he 
toils on. 

6 



42 Oration. 

The Acotink, the Cub Run, the never-to-be-for- 
gotten Bull Run, are passed. Here, of a sudden, 
strange and terrible sounds strike upon his ear, and 
bear down upon his heart; the booming of shotted 
cannon ; the screeching of bursted shell through the 
heated air, and the zip, zip, zip, of smaller balls; 
everything produces a singular effect upon him. 
Again, all at once he is thrown, quite unprepared, 
upon a new and trying experience ; for now he meets 
the groaning ambulance and the bloody stretcher. 
He meets limping, armless, legless, disfigured, 
wounded men. To the right of him and to the left 
of him are the lifeless forms of the slain. 

Suddenly a large iron missile of death strikes 
close beside him, and explodes, sending out twenty 
or more jagged fragments, which remorselessly 
maim or kill five or six of his mates before they 
have had the opportunity to strike one blow for their 
country. 

His face is now very pale ; and will not the Amer- 
ican soldier flinch and turn back? 

There is a stone wall ; there is a building ; there 
is a stack of hay ; it is so easy to hide. 

But no ! He will not be a coward ! "Oh God, 
support and strengthen me !" 'Tis all his prayer. 

Soon he is at work. Yonder is the foe. "Load 
and fire ;" "load and fire." 

But the cry comes, "Our flank is turned !" "Our 
men retreat!" With tears pouring down his cheek, 



Oration. 4? 

he slowly yields, and joins the retiring throng. 
Without any more nerve and little strength, he 
struggles back from a lost field. 

Now he drinks the dregs of suffering. Without 
blanket for the night, without food, without hope, it 
is no wonder that a panic seizes him, and he runs 
demoralized away. 

This disreputable course, however, is only tem- 
porary. The soldier before long forgets his defeat 
and his sufferings, brightens up his armor, and re- 
sumes his place on the defensive line. 

He submits for weary days to discipline, drill, and 
hard fare ; he wades through the snows of winter 
and the deep mud of a Virginia spring. 

He sleeps upon the ground, upon the deck of 
transport steamer, and upon the floor of the plat- 
form car. He helps load and unload stores ; he 
makes fascines and gabions ; he corduroys quick- 
sands, and bridges creeks and bogs. Night and day 
he digs, or watches in the trenches. 

What a world of new experience ! What pecu- 
liar labor and suffering he passes through, the sol- 
dier alone can tell you. 

He now marches hurriedly to his second battle ; 
soon after he is in a series of them. Fight and fall 
back! Fight and fall back! Oh those days of 
hopelessness, sorrow, toil, and emaciation. How 
vividly the living soldier remembers them, those 
days when he cried from the bottom of his heart, 
"Oh, God, how long ! how long !" 



44 Oration. 

Would you have patience to follow him through 
the commingling of disasters from the battle of Ce- 
dar Mountain to the same old Bull Run, you would 
emerge with him from the chaos and behold his glis- 
tening bayonet again on the successful field of An- 
tietam, where a glimmer of hope lighted up his 
heart. 

Would you go with him to the bloody fields of 
Fredericksburg-, staunch his wounds in the wilder- 
ness of Chancellorsville, and journey on with him 
afterwards to this hallowed ground of Gettysburg, 
and could you be enabled to read and record his 
toils, his sufferings, and all his thoughts, you might 
be able to appreciate the true American soldier. 
You might then recite the first chapter of the cost 
of the preservation of the American Union. In 
September, 1863, after the battle of Gettysburg, the 
Government sends two army corps to reinforce our 
brethren in the West. 

The soldier is already far from home and friends, 
but he is suddenly apprised that he must go two 
thousand miles further. He cannot visit his family 
to take leave of them. He has scarcely the oppor- 
tunity of writing a line of farewell. 

The chances of death are multitudinous as they 
appear before his imagination, and the hope of re- 
turning is very slender. 

Yet again the soldier does not falter. With forty 
others he crowds into the close, unventilatcd freight 



Oration. 45 

car, and speeds away, night and day, without even 
the luxury of a decent seat. 

With all the peculiar discomforts of this journey, 
the backings and the waitings at the railroad junc- 
tions, the transfers from car to car, and from train to 
train ; being confined for days without the solace 
and strength derived from his coffee, there is yet 
something compensative in the exhilerating influence 
of change. And there is added to it, in passing 
through Ohio and Indiana, a renewed inspiration as 
the people turn out in masses to welcome him and 
to bid him God-speed ; as little girls throw wreaths 
of flowers round his neck, kiss his bronzed cheek, 
and* strew his car with other offerings of love and 
devotion. 

Such impressions as were here received were 
never effaced. They touched the rough heart anew 
with tenderness, and, being a reminder of all the old 
home affections, only served to deepen his resolution 
sooner or later, by the blessing of God, to reach the 
goal of his ambition ; that is to say, with his compa- 
triots, to secure to his children, and to other children, 
enduring peace, with liberty and an undivided country. 

He passes on through Kentucky, through the bat- 
tle-fields of Tennessee, already historical. 

The names, Nashville, Stone River, Murfreesboro, 
and Tullahoma, reminded him of past struggles and 
portended future conflicts. 

He is deposited at Bridgeport, Alabama, a house- 



46 Oration. 

less, cheerless, chilly place, on the banks of the 
Tennessee ; possessing no interest further than that 
furnished by the railroad bridge destroyed, and the 
yet remaining rubbish and filth of an enemy's camp. 

Before many days the soldier threads his way up 
the valley of the great river which winds and twists 
amid the rugged mountains, till he finds himself be- 
neath the rock-crowned steeps of Lookout. 

Flash after flash, volume after volume of light- 
colored smoke, and peal on peal of cannon, the 
crashing sound of shot and the screaming of shell, 
arc the ominous signs of unfriendly welcome sent 
forth to meet him from this rocky height. 

Yet on he marches, in spite of threatening danger, 
in spite of the ambush along his route, until he has 
joined hands with his Western brother, who had 
come from Chattanooga to meet and to greet him. 

This is where the valley of Lookout joins that of 
the Tennessee. 

At this place the stories of Eastern and Western 
hardship, suffering, battling, and danger, are recapit- 
ulated and made to blend into the common history 
and the common sacrifice of the American soldier. 

Were there time, I would gladly take you, step by- 
step, with the soldier, as he bridges and crosses the 
broad and rapid river ; as he ascends and storms the 
height of Mission Ridge ; or as he plants his victor- 
ious feet, waves his banner, and flashes his gun on 
the top of Lookout Mountain. 



Oration. 47 

I would carry you with him across the death-bear- 
ing streams of Chickamauga. I would have you 
follow him in his weary, barefooted, wintry march to 
the relief of Knoxville and back to Chattanooga. 

From this point of view I would open up the 
spring campaign, where the great General initiated 
his remarkable work of genius and daring. 

I could point you to the soldier pursuing his ene- 
my into the strongholds of Dalton, behind the stern, 
impassable features of Rocky Face. 

Resaca, Adairsville, Cassville, Dallas, New Hope 
Church, Pickett's Mill, Pine Top, Lost Mountain, 
Kenesaw, Gulp's Farm, Smyrna, Camp Ground, 
Peach Tree Creek, Atlanta, from so many points of 
view, and Jonesboro, are names of battle fields upon 
each of which a soldier's memory dwells. 

For upwards of a hundred days he scarcely rested 
from the conflict. 

He skirmished over rocks, hills and mountains; 
through mud, streams and forests. 

For hundreds of miles he gave his aid to dig that 
endless chain of entrenchments which compassed 
every one of the enemy's fortified positions. He 
companied with those who combatted the obstinate 
foe on the front and on the flanks of those moun- 
tain fastnesses which the enemy had deemed im- 
pregnable, and he had a right at last to echo the 
sentiment of his indefatigable leader, "Atlanta is 
ours, and fairly won." 



48 Oration. 

Could you now have patience to turn back with 
him and fight these battles over again, behold his 
communications cut, his railroad destroyed for miles 
and miles ; enter the bloody fight of Alatoona, fol- 
low him through the forced marches, via Rome, Ga., 
away back to Resaca, and through the obstructed 
gaps of the mountains into Alabama, you would 
thank God for giving him a stout heart and an un- 
flinching faith in a just and noble cause. 

Weary and worn, he reposed at Atlanta, on his 
return, but one single night, when he commenced the 
memorable march toward Savannah. 

The soldier has become a veteran; he can march 
all day with his musket, his knapsack, his cartridge- 
box, his haversack and canteen upon his person ; his 
muscles have become large and rigid, so that what 
was once extremely difficult he now accomplishes 
with graceful ease. 

This fact must be borne in mind when studying 
the soldiers' marches through Georgia and the Car- 
olinas. 

The enemy burned every bridge across stream 
after stream; the rivers, bordered with swamps — 
for example, the Ocmulgee, the Oconee, and the 
Ogechee — were defended at every crossing. That. 
they were passed at all by our forces, is due to the 
cheerful, fearless, indomitable private soldier. 

Oh that you had seen him, as I have done, wading 
creeks a half mile in width, and water waist deep, 



Oration. 49 

under fire, pressing on through wide swamps, with- 
out one faltering step, charging in line upon the most 
formidable works, which were well defended ! You 
could then appreciate him and what he has accom- 
plished as I do. You could then feel the poignant 
sorrow that I always did feel when I saw. him fall 
bleeding to the earth. 

I must now leave the soldier to tell his own tale 
amongst the people, of his bold, bloody work at Mc- 
Allister, against, the torpedoes, abattis, artillery, and 
musketry ; of his privations at Savannah ; of his 
struggles through the swamps, quicksands, and over 
the broad rivers of the Carolinas ; of the fights, 
fires, explosions, doubts, and triumphs suggested by 
Griswoldville, Rivers' and Binnaker's brido-es. Or- 
angeburg, Congaree creek, Columbia, Cheraw, Fay- 
etteville, Averysboro, and Bentonville. 

I will leave him to tell how his hopes brightened 
at the reunion at Goldsboro. How his heart throb- 
bed with gratitude and joy as the wires confirmed 
the rumored news of Lee's defeat, so soon to be 
followed by the capture of the enemy's Capitol and 
of his entire army. I will leave him to tell to your- 
selves and your children, how he felt and acted ; 
how proud was his bearing; how elastic his step, as he 
marched in review before the President of the Uni- 
ted States at Washington ! I would do the soldier 
injustice not to say that there was one thing wanting 
to make his satisfaction complete, and that was the 
7 



50 Oration. 

sight of the tall form of Abraham Lincoln, and the 
absence of that bitter recollection which he could 
not altogether exclude from his heart — that he had 
died by the hand of a traitor assassin. 

I have given you only glimpses of the American 
soldier, as I have seen him. To feel the full force 
of what he has done and suffered, you should have 
accompanied him for the last four years. You 
should have stood upon the battle-fields during, and 
after, the struggle ; and you should have completed 
your observation in the army hospitals, and upon the 
countless grounds peopled with the dead. The 
maimed bodies, the multitude of graves, the historic 
fields, the monumental stones like this we are laying 
to-day, after all are only meagre memorials of the 
soldiers' work. 

God grant that what he planted, nourished, and 
has now preserved by his blood — I mean American 
liberty — may be a plant dear to us as the apple of 
the eye, and that its growth may not be hindered till 
its roots are firmly set in every State of this Union, 
and till the full fruition of its blessed fruit is realized 
by men of every name, color and description, in this 
broad land. 

Now, as I raise my eyes and behold the place 
where my friend and trusted commander, General 
Reynolds, fell, let me add my own testimonial, to that 
of others, that we lost in him a true patriot, a true 
man, a complete General, and a thorough soldier. 



Oration. 57 

Upon him, and the others who died here for their 
country, let there never cease to descend the most 
earnest benediction of every American heart. 

Let me congratulate this noble Keystone State 
that it was able to furnish such tried and able men 
as Reynolds who fell, and Meade who lived to guide 
us successfully through this wonderful and hotl/con- 
tested battle. 

In the midst of all conflicts, of all sorrows and 
triumphs, let us never, for an instant, forget that 
there is a God in Heaven whose arm is strong to 
help — whose balm is sweet to assuage every pain — 
and whose love embraces all joy. 

To Him, then, let us look in gratitude and praise 
that it has been His will so greatly to bless our na- 
tion ; and may this Monument ever remind us and 
our posterity, in view of the fact that we prevailed 
against our enemies, "that righteousness exalteth a 
nation, but sin is a reproach to any people." 



One of the Military Bands then played a piece of musio, 
which was followed by the reading of the following original 
POEM, by the author : 



by CJiAS, <;. hau'ixk, {•'Miles ()' liill ;/,'') 



As men beneath some pang of grief 

Or sudden joy will dumbly stand, 
Finding no words to give relief — 

Clear, passion-warm, complete, and brief- 
To thoughts with which their soul-* expand; 

So here to-day — these trophies nigh — 
Our trembling lips no utterance reach ; 

The hills around, the graves, the sky — > 

The mI.mh purrn of the eye 

Surpasses all the art of speech! 

To-day, a Nation meets to build 

A Nation's trophy to the d 
Who, living, formed the sword and shield— - 
The arms ' '.rued to wield 

Win i ci had fled. 

Aad not ho lie 

In honored gra us blent, 

our proud column, broad and high, 
ing sky, 

But be for all a monument. 



Poem. 53 

An emblem of our grief, as well 
For ethers as for these, we raise; 

For these beneath our feet who dwell, 
And all who in the Good Cause fell 

On oilier fields, in other frays. 
To all the self-same love we boar 

Which here for marbled memory strives; 
No soldier for a wreath would care 
Which all true comrades might not share— • 

Brothers in death as in their lives! 

On Southern hill-sides, parched and brown, 

In tangled swamp, on verdant ridge, 
Where pines and broadening oaks look down, 
And jasmine weaves its yellow crown, 

And trumpet-creepers clothe the hedge ; 
Along the shores of endless sand, 

Beneath the palms of Southern plains. 
Sleep everywhere, hand locked in hand, 
The brothers of the gallant band 

Who here poured life through throbbing veins. 

Around the closing eyes of all 

The same red glories glared and flew — 
The hurrying flags, the bugle-call, 
The whistle of the angry ball, 

The elbow-touch of comrades true! 
The skirmish-fire — a spattering spray ; 

The long, sharp growl of fire by file, 
The thickening fury of the fray 
When opening batteries get in play, 

Aud the lines form o'er many a mile. 

The foeman's yell, our answering cheer, 

Bed flashes through the gathering smoke, 
Swift orders, resonant and clear, 
Blithe cries from comrades tried and dear, 

The shell-scream and the sabre-stroke ; 
The rolliug fire from left to right, 

From right to left, we hear it .-well ; 
The headlong charges, swift and bright, 
The thickening tumult of the light 

And bursting thunders of the shell. 



54 Poem. 



Now, deadlier, denser grows the strife, 

And hero we yield, and there we gain ; 
The air with hurtling missiles rife. 
Volley for volley, life for life — 

No time to beed the cries of pain! 
Panting as up the hills we charge, 

Or down them as we broken roll, 
Life never felt so high, so large, 
And never o'er .so wide a marge 

In triumph swept the kindling soul! 

New raptures waken in the breast 

Amid this hell of scene and sound ; 
The barking batteries never rest, 
And broken foot, by horsemen pressed, 

Still stubbornly contest their ground. 
Fresh waves of battle rolling in 

To take the place of shattered waves ; 
Torn lines that grow more bent and thin— 
A blinding cloud, a maddening din — 

'Twas thus were filled these very graves! 

Night falls at length with pitying veil — 

A moonlit silence deep and fresh ; 
These upturned faces, stained and pale, 
Vainly the chill night dews assail — 

For colder than the dews their flesh ! 
And flickering far through brush and wood 

Go searching-parties, torch in hand — 
"Seize il you can some rest and food, 
At dawn the fight will be renewed, 

Sleep on your arms!" the hushed command. 

They talk in whispers as they lie 

In line — these rough and weary men : 
"Dead or but wounded?" then a sigh ; 
"No coffee either 1" "Guess we'll try 

To get those two guns back again." 
"We five flags to their one! oho!" 

"That bridge — 'twas hot there as we passed!'' 
"The colonel dead ! It can't be so ; 
Wounded and badly — that I know: 

JJuL he kept saddle Lo the last." 



Poem. 55 

"Be sure to send it if I fall — " 

"Any tobacco? Bill, have you?" 
"A brown-haired, blue-eyed, laughing doll — " 
"Good-night, boys, and God keep you all !" 

"What! sound asleep? Guess I'll sleep too." 
"Yes, just about this hour they pray 

For Dad." "Stop talking ! pass the word !" 
And soon as quiet as the clay 
Which thousands will but be next day 

The long-drawn sighs of sleep are heard. 

Oh, men ! to whom this sketch, though rude, 

Calls back some scene of pain and pride: 
Oh, widow! hugging close your brood, 
Oh, wife I with happiness renewed, 

Since he again is at your side; 
This trophy that to-day we raise 

Should be a monument for all; 
And on its sides no niggard phrase 
Confine a generous Nation's praise 

To those who here have chanced to fall. 

But let us all to-day combine 

Still other monuments to raise; 
Here for the Dead we build a shrine ; 
And now to those who, crippled, pine, 

Let us give hope of happier days : — 
Let Homes for these sad wrecks of war 

Through all the land with speed arise; 
Tongues cry from every gaping scar, 
"Let not our brother's tomb debar 

The wounded living from your eyes." 

A noble day, a deed as good, 

A noble scene in which 'tis done, 
The Birthday of our Nationhood : 
And here again the Nation stood 

On this same day — its life rewon ! 
A bloom of banners in the air, 

A double calm of sky and soul ; 
Triumphal chant and bugle blare, 
And green fields, spreading bright and fair, 

While heavenward our Hosannas roll. 



66 Poem. 



Hosannas for a land redeemed, 

The bayonet sheathed, the cannon. dumb; 
Passed, as some horror we have dreamed, 
The fiery meteors that here streamed, 

Threatening within our homes to come! 
Again our banner floats abroad; 

Gone the one stain that on it fell — 
And, bettered by His chastening rod, 
With streaming eyes uplift to God 

We say, "He doeth ai.i. things well/' 



The following Hymn was then sung to the memory of our 
fallen heroes at the Battle of Gettysburg, Pa., July 1st, 2nd 
and 3rd, by the National Union Musical Association of Bal- 
timore ! 

Hark! a nation's sighs ascend! 

Hark! a thousand voices blend, 
From your thrones of glory bend, 
Sons of Liberty ! 

From each dark empurpled field, 

Where your blood the Union sealed, 
Spirit-tongues to-day have peal'd,, 
The Soldier's Requiem ! 

Where the smoke of battle curl'd, 

Where the bolt of death was hurl'd, 
Ye our starry flag unfurl'd, 

Floating o'er the free! 

In the dark and trying hour, 

Putting forth your steady power, 
Caused the Rebel hordes to cower, 
Just two years ago ! 

Flashing sword and burning word, 

Southrons felt and Southrons heard — 
Plum'd our country's banner-bird, 
Just two years ago ! 

Martyr'd sons of trying days, 

While the world resounds your praise, 
Hear the songs your children raise, 
Sons of Liberty ! 



SPEECH 



A.. O. CXJE.TI3ST, 

00VERNOR OF PENNSYLVANIA. 



The programme for the exercises of the occasion having 
been fulfilled, calls were made by all the people present for 
Governor Curtin, who spoke in substance as follows: 

Having learned last week that my name occurred on the 
programme, for the ceremonies of this occasion, I immediately 
asked that it should be omitted. There did not seem to be 
time for such preparation, as would be proper for a cere- 
monial like this. I am deeply grateful for your hearty and 
enthusiastic request that I should be heard, and I will draw 
upon the inspirations of the time and the place, the connex- 
ion between the event and this Sabbath day of American 
Freedom, and the hallowed precincts within which we all 
stand. 

It would seem to be proper for me to express the thanks 
of the People of Pennsylvania to the citizens of the United 
States, who join with us to-day, and who have hitherto con- 
tributed their influence and means to the erection of this 
place of sepulture, for the remains of those who perished in 
the great battles of Gettysburg, and who, this day, surround 
the foundation stone of a monument to their memory. Wo 
thank the citizens of the eighteen States, who have given val- 
uable and voluntary service, as Trustees of the Association, 
representing their respective States. We thank the people, 
who have come up here in multitudes to participate in these 



Gov. Curtin's Speech. 50 



solemnities. We thank that patriotic and benevolent brother- 
hood, so well represented here to-day by its chiefs, for their 
ancient rites and ceremonies, for their words of fraternity 
and love, contributed and pronounced upon the corner-stone 
of this structure, which is to be the monument of the devo- 
tion and fidelity to country of their brothers and ours. 
And we are fortunate in having here with us, my fellow-citi- 
zens, the great chief who commanded the historic Army of 
the Potomac, on the signal day which made his fame and 
that of his Army, forever illustrious in the annals of Ameri- 
can history ; and we express with one voice our thanks to 
him and his brave companions, so many of whom remain to 
surround him here, and honor us with their presence. But 
more than all, my fellow-citizens, let us all unite in our ex- 
pressions of gratitude to the sublime heroism and unselfish 
patriotism of the private soldiers of the Republic ; for to 
them, above all others, we owe the safety of our Free Gov- 
ernment, and the return of the blessings of peace and tranquil- 
ity to our distressed country. I could not but feel the un- 
selfishness of the words of the chosen Orator of the day ; 
and the armless sleeve of the maimed General, seemed of it- 
self eloquent, when he forgot the statesmen and generals o f 
the war, and gave credit to the private soldier for all the glo- 
ries, which now surround the blood-stained, but forever stable, 
Institutions of American liberty. 

Our monument should be the choicest work of art on this 
Continent ; it should be made beautiful and strong ; this 
place will forever be attractive; the statesman can here med- 
itate on the sacrifices made for liberty and civilization ; the 
soldier can study the faultless plan of battle, and all can 
count here, the cost to this generation of maintaining the 
principles of Freedom, transmitted to us from our ancestors ; 
but no work of art can express our feelings of gratitude for 
the Soldier of the Republic, living or dead ; be has his mem- 
ory enshrined in the hearts of a grateful people, "there a 
monument that needs no scroll." 

But why should I speak to you today? It is but two 



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